NEW YORK CITY — A rare broadside edition of the Declaration of Independence shattered expectations when it sold to a phone bidder at Christie’s on January 22, for $990,000, against an estimate of $600/800,000. It was the top lot not only in the three-session sale titled “In Praise of America: Important American Furniture, Folk Art, Silver, Prints and Broadsides” but was the top lot in an Americana Week that also included Outsider Art and Chinese Export. The broadside — of which only about a dozen other related editions are known to exist — was one of several documents in the sale from the collection of Ambassador J. William Middendorf, a group of works that saw several notable results. Among these was a world record for a copy of Paul Revere’s engraving of the Boston Massacre, which brought $412,500, easily besting a $200/300,000 estimate. The sale total of $5,936,000 was part of $9,202,500 achieved during the week.

More extensive sale reviews to follow. For information, www.christies.com.